Admission to Take Selected Courses in the JD Program 

StudyingFirst Consult the NCA

Regardless of immigration status in Canada, candidates with law degrees from other countries or a civil law degree from the province of Quebec who are seeking to qualify to practice law in a common law province in Canada should first consult with the National Committee on Accreditation (NCA).

The NCA examines the qualifications of internationally-trained lawyers and issues assessments setting out the requirements a candidate must complete before he or she is qualified to enter the Lawyer Licensing Process in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. In many cases, the NCA will require candidates to successfully complete specified subjects either by taking particular courses at a Canadian law school or by passing NCA challenge examinations.

National Committee on Accreditation (NCA)
Federation of Law Societies of Canada
World Exchange Plaza
1810-45 O'Connor St.
Ottawa ON K1P 1A4
https://nca.legal/

Meeting NCA Requirements via Selected Courses in the JD Program

Once the NCA assessment has been received, internationally trained lawyers should view the options available at the Faculty for NCA students, see the National Committee on Accreditation Options.

For candidates wish to apply to take certain courses individually in the JD program at the Faculty of Law to fulfill their NCA requirements, please note the following:

The total number of places in the JD program at the Faculty of Law is fixed and is determined by the University of Toronto. These places, for which a subsidy is provided by the government of Ontario, are reserved for students pursuing a degree. However, the Faculty attempts to facilitate the professional accreditation of internationally-trained lawyers by admitting a limited number of NCA candidates each year to attend courses.

Course Enrolment & Completion

Admission is on a fee for course basis, estimated to be per course approximately $8,780 for 2024-2025; plus HST (13% government tax), subject to change in future academic years.

Enrolment in JD courses is not guaranteed and it subject to the availability of places. A maximum of seven JD courses may be taken with permission. Please note that Foundations of Canadian Law is not offered as a JD course. NCA students are not permitted to attend courses to which they have not been admitted. 

Courses taken by NCA students are graded as credit/no credit. Upon completion of courses taken, a Statement of Grades is provided for the academic year. There is no academic credential (e.g. UofT certificate or diploma) since the courses are taken individually on a non-degree basis.

 

Admission Selection

The number of NCA candidates admitted each year varies and is subject to the availability of places in the courses most commonly required by the National Committee. 

Selection is based primarily on the applicant's performance in previous legal studies (including results of all NCA challenge exams) and the assessment of the Admissions Committee as to whether or not the applicant is likely to be successful in the courses offered at the Faculty of Law. 

A candidate who has failed any NCA exam will not be considered for admission.

The Admissions Committee will take into account differences in the quality of law schools, as well as differences in grading policies, etc. Unless this is evident from the transcript, applicants are encouraged to support their applications with information from their law school Registrar or Dean on the grading practices at their law school, and to provide their class ranking, if available.  

Applicants who are required by the NCA to complete 60 credits may also be considered as transfer applicants to the Faculty's J.D. program provided their applications include all of the required elements for a transfer application. Applicants interested in ensuring that they will also be considered as potential transfer students should consult the JD Upper-Year Applicants page.

Application Procedure

For entry in 2024-2025, applications for JD studies are due at Ontario Law School Application Service (OLSAS) by 11:59 pm (Toronto time) on May 1, 2024.
Applications must be submitted by the deadline even if NCA assessment results and/or law school records are not yet available. Applications will only be reviewed after all required documentation has been received.

NCA applicants must submit the following documentation directly to OLSAS:

  1. OLSAS application form 
  2. a copy of the official NCA assessment, sent directly from the NCA
  3. a copy of results of all NCA exams taken to date
  4. a written note specifying if you intend to take, or not take, any NCA exams before enrolling at the law school
  5. LSAT score(s), if the LSAT was taken
  6. official and original law school academic transcripts (see note on transcripts below)
  7. a Personal Statement

Transcripts
Applicants who completed their undergraduate degrees (or completed more than a year of study) at post-secondary institutions outside of Canada or the United States may be required to submit a third-party course-by-course assessment of their transcripts (from World Services Canada) as a condition of an offer of admission.

Ontario Law School Application Service (OLSAS)
Ontario Universities’ Application Centre
170 Research Lane
Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 5E2
 
Email: olsas@ouac.on.ca
Tel: 519.823-1063

 

Late Applications

For entry in 2024-2025, applications are due at OLSAS on May 1, 2024. However, the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto is prepared to consider requests to submit late applications. The request can be emailed with attachments to admissions.law@utoronto.ca. The law school will be more receptive to requests for late application that are accompanied by unofficial copies of all post-secondary transcripts (and LSAT scores, if the LSAT has been taken) and the NCA assessment.

Application Fee

The OLSAS processing fee is CAD $200 plus a University Fee of $115.00 for each law school selection. All fees are non-refundable. The University Fee, collected by OLSAS but remitted directly to the Faculty of Law, assists us in covering a portion of our costs associated with the admission assessment. Please see the OLSAS application material for detailed fee information.

 

NCA Fees Per Course
The estimated NCA fee per course is $8,780 for 2024-2025; plus HST (13% government tax). This fee is subject to change in future academic years.

Financial Assistance
NCA students are not eligible for financial assistance through University or Faculty bursary or loan funds.


NCA Grade Appeal
This truncated process permits NCA students to request a second reader of exams for which they receive an F or No-Credit mark.

Which Decisions Can Be Appealed?
NCA Students can appeal decisions about a final grade of F or No-Credit assigned to a course.

The Process for Grade Appeals
Students may appeal a final grade only once that grade is issued. The basis for the appeal is not limited to final exams or essay assignments. Any exam or written assignment on which a final grade is based may be the subject of a grade appeal. To pursue a grade appeal, the following steps must be completed:

Request for Reassessment
The student must first request a rereading of the written work in writing. The student must set forth the academic grounds for why he or she believes the work was incorrectly assessed. The request for a rereading or reassessment must be made to the Associate Dean’s office in writing within 30 days of the grade being released by the Records Office. The Associate Dean shall read the written work and within 30 days of the student’s request the Associate Dean may decide that appeal or assign a second reader.

Second Reader Assessment for Grade Appeals Based on Written Work
When the Associate Dean arranges an assessment of the written work by a second reader, the second reader shall have appropriate expertise in the subject matter of the written work. The Associate Dean shall give the student's written reasons for the appeal to the second reader. When reviewing the written work and the student's written reasons for the appeal, the second reader shall apply the standard of whether a reasonable marker could have reached the same conclusion as the instructor did in the same circumstances. In applying the standard, the second reader may consider other materials relating to the course, such as the written work of other students, and the course outline in the syllabus. The second reader shall render a decision on the written work within 30 days of receiving the grade appeal record. If, after reviewing the grade appeal record, the second reader decides that a reasonable marker could not have reached the same conclusion, the second reader shall assign the grade to the written work that he or she believes a reasonable marker would have assigned.